Yesterday was an excellent day for SC House Bill H.5025 as it received a very positive hearing in front of the House committee. Paton Blough was a part of the hearing, and was also featured in a couple of local news outlets as they covered the bill. While H.5025 hasn’t passed in the House Committee yet, we are expecting that it will next week.

Gary Enos has written an excellent article in Mental Health Weekly about Paton and his experiences with bipolar in jail, and his activism for reform in the criminal justice system. The article also talks about Paton speaking at the Stepping Up Initiative in earlier this year in May.

Paton on Social

About Paton Blough

In 2005, Paton’s Bipolar Type 1 caused him to spend his next 3 years in and out of prisons and hospitals—experiencing both mania and depression.

Paton eventually became involved in a NAMI support group where he received therapy and learned to never give up hope. Since then, Paton has been involved in mental health advocacy, Crisis Intervention Team training, and speaks across the country on mental health and illness.